New Year's resolutions don't work! At least not for most people, according to the experts. Part of the reason why is unrealistic goal setting.

If it took months or years to put on extra weight, for instance, then it's probably not realistic to expect to drop 10, 20, or 30 pounds or more overnight.

Likewise, it's probably not realistic to set business and financial goals that are unrealistic either. For instance, if you've never made close to a million dollars, then it may not be realistic to say to yourself, "I'm going to make a million dollars this year." It is realistic, however, to work toward eventually equaling and replacing your current income with your new or existing home business. Once you achieve that goal then you can always move the bar higher and, eventually, the sky truly can be the limit.

Numerous lists get compiled each year of the New Year's resolutions that people value the most. Below are the Top Ten choices from one such list:

1. Spend More Time with Family And Friends.

2. Become More Fitness Conscience And Exercise More.

3. Reduce Weight.

4. Quit Smoking.

5. Enjoy Life More.

6. Quit Drinking.

7. Get Out Of Debt.

8. Learn Something New.

9. Help Others.

10. Get Organized.

Other articles on ABCIncome.com point out the fact that skills that you must learn in the process of growing a successful home business, such as learning how to sell and market, can also help you in many other areas of life as well. In fact, with the possible exceptions of quitting drinking or smoking, creating a SUCCESSFUL home business can actually help you achieve almost every goal on the Top Ten list of the goals that people say they want to accomplish most!

#1 Spend More Time with Family And Friends

Having your own home business, once it has gotten off the ground and is running smoothly, can easily give you more freedom and flexibility in your schedule and lifestyle than your current job or business. You set you own hours. You decide when to work and when not to work. And you decide when you want to take time off.

#2 Become More Fitness Conscience And Exercise More

Following along with item #1 above, you can create more time in your schedule for recreation, exercise, and other healthy pursuits. The extra income from your home business can allow you to afford more options, such as club memberships or home exercise equipment, than you might have otherwise. It can also allow you to afford some of the healthier grocery and restaurant choices that you might have avoided in the past due to the higher cost of eating healthy.

#3 Reduce Weight

Many people are on the go so much, or, just the opposite, their job requires them to sit for much of the day, that watching the waistline can be difficult. Following along with items #1 and #2 above you can create a healthier working environment, more time for exercise, and be able to afford healthier options. I'll share a "secret" with you that only some of my closest friends and associates generally know: Normally I like to work out early in the morning, sometimes at lunch, or possibly before or after dinner. However, if I'm in the midst of a really busy day I'll sometimes hop on my treadmill while returning phone calls! A neat trick of "multitasking" that I can do when working from home, but that I wouldn't be able to pull off in most offices if I was working for someone else.

#4 Quit Smoking

I don't want to venture too far on this one, especially since I'm not a smoke r. However, since many people smoke because of stress, perhaps reducing your stress levels by being your own boss might help?

#5 Enjoy Life More

See all of the above ( and below )...

#6 Quit Drinking

See #4 above...

#7 Get Out Of Debt

To become the owner/operator of a successful home business you will HAVE to become good with finances and money if you don't already have those skills. And, just as important, your ability to earn as much as you like ( potentially an unlimited income ) means that you can create for yourself the ability to pay off bills and debt much faster.

#8 Learn Something New.

Savvy and successful businesspeople are always learning and looking for ways to improve their business and their lifestyle, whether through seminars, college courses, or books, tapes, videos, etc. The more you learn about how to do things right, the faster your business is likely to grow and the more successful you'll be.

#9 Help Others.

As the old saying goes it truly is better to give than receive! Helping and giving to others is also truly one of the most satisfying gifts that we can give to ourselves. It is a wonderful feeling when you are able to help others. A successful home business can provide you with both more money, and more free time to find good and productive things to do with it.

#10 Get Organized.

"Organization" means different things to different people. To some a "clean desk" implies that the person who works there must not be doing enough work, because if they were busy their desk would be cluttered! To others a clean desk is the mark of an organized and efficient worker. Regardless of where you rate on the neatness scale, the better organized you are, and the more efficient, the more successful your business is likely to be. Creating a successful home business will also teach you how to become more organized and efficient in the process.

Again, whatever your goals for this year, be realistic!

Remember the ancient Chinese proverb that even, "a journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step."

Sometimes we never get started because whatever the goal is that we have in mind just seems too big, too daunting, too overwhelming, or too unachievable. But, if you divide your goal up into little, "bit sized," chunks that you can bite off one at a time you are far more likely not only to get started to begin with, but to actually finish and achieve your goal.

So, if, for instance, you are currently making $500 a week at your job that might be a good first goal for you to aim for: to see if you can make $500 a week in your home business. And after you hit your first week where you make $500 in one week then you can raise the bar by working toward making $500 each and every week. And after you've done that then perhaps you go back to the drawing board, reassess your goals, and maybe next you want to try to make $1,000 a week, and so on. Of course, you can plug your own numbers in here. If you're already making $100,00 a year, for instance, then you might want to chart out how soon you feel that you can "realistically" equal that amount with your home business. Again, start with a weekly figure, which in this case would be a little over $2,000 a week, and then, once you've hit that figure, continue the process on from there.

Remember too that, as they say, Rome wasn't built in a day! If you're consistently making any respectable amount of money in your home business you are already doing better than a lot of other people, and probably even better than most. Just use the approach above to keep improving on the process.

Lastly, remember that NOTHING HAPPENS IF YOU DO NOTHING!

The saying that, "if you continue to do what you're doing you'll continue to get what you're getting," isn't just an old cliché, it's true!

So, pick a realistic, bite size goal, whatever it may be, and just get started. JUST DO SOMETHING, STARTING TODAY! even if it's just sitting down and writing down what you are going to do, what you are going to accomplish, and what's required to realistically get there. And then keep doing it, and keep improving upon it. Do this and you'll be better off than the 9 out of 10 people who make New Year's resolutions, but never keep them...

If you like this article and are interested in finding more like these you can go to the link provided in the resource box at the bottom of this article. Enjoy!

Phil Covington
http://www.abcincome.com